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Harry Kane has the power to leave Bayern Munich after ensuring an exit clause was written into his contract following his move from Tottenham.

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• Kane has release clause in current Bayern contract
• Was available for €80 million (£66m) in January
• Clause has now dropped significantly

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Kane joined Bayern from Tottenham in a blockbuster £100 million ($125m) move back in 2023. The forward is famously yet to win a trophy with the Bavarian giants but has been in prolific form, scoring 55 goals in 50 Bundesliga matches to make history at the Allianz Arena. Yet Kane does have the power to trigger a release clause in his Bayern contract should he wish, according to which could potentially lead him to a return to the Premier League. The England captain was available for just €80 million (£66m) in the January transfer window but that clause will now be available again next winter at the reduced fee of €65m (£54m).

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  There's no suggestion at all that Kane wants to leave Bayern or has even pondered an exit. The striker has settled well in Munich and will be hoping to end his trophy drought this season. Bayern currently top the Bundesliga table by six points from Bayer Leverkusen and will face Celtic for a place in the last 16 of the Champions League.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Kane is contracted to Bayern until 2027 but club chiefs have been looking at potential successors in the long term, with Benjamin Sesko and Viktor Gyokeres of interest to the Bavarian giants.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR KANE

  Kane has been in good form recently for Bayern, scoring four goals in his last three games, and will be hoping to continue that run on Friday against Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga.

Lisandro Martinez has reportedly undergone surgery on his torn anterior cruciate ligament – with the Argentine potentially sidelined for up to a year.

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• Martinez out for season
• Has surgery on ACL injury
• Could be out for up to a year

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  According to the Daily Mail, Martinez had surgery in London on his ACL on Thursday and initial signs are that the operation was successful. The report adds recovery periods can range from six months to a year but if he responds well he may have the chance to return to fitness for the start of next season.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Martinez, 27, suffered the serious injury at home to Crystal Palace earlier this month as his United woes continued. The former Ajax star has missed dozens of games for the Red Devils with metatarsal, foot, knee, and calf injuries and now this latest blow is a huge setback.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  According to transfermarkt, Argentine international Martinez has been sidelined for a whopping 280 days due to the injuries he has had since moving to United in 2022.

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  WHAT NEXT?

  While Martinez will start his rehab soon, his United side are away to Tottenham in the Premier League on Sunday.

Everton are believed to be hiring two new specialists at the club, including an expert on scouting youth players, according to an exciting report that has emerged during the international break.

Everton transfer & manager latest

The Blues continue to be linked with possible new signings, with FCSB centre-back Joyskim Dawa linked with a move to Goodison Park. He has averaged a hugely impressive seven clearances per game in the Europa League this season, which is more than both Michael Keane and James Tarkowski have managed in the Premier League.

Meanwhile, Silas has also been mentioned as an option for Everton, with the attacker currently on loan at Red Star Belgrade from Bundesliga side VfB Stuttgart. He has 56 goal contributions in 132 appearances for the latter, showing that he could be a strong source of end product for the Merseysiders.

As for Sean Dyche’s future as manager at Goodison, the Englishman looks to be safe in his job for the time being, but rumours continue to emerge regarding potential successors.

One significant rumour that has dropped has suggested that Dan Friedkin wants David Moyes to return as manager on an interim basis, prior to making way for Jose Mourinho at the end of this season. The latter would be a significant appointment if it happened, given his status as one of the leading coaches of his generation.

Everton make key in-house appointment

Now, a fresh report from Goodison News has claimed that Everton are hiring two new specialists at Finch Farm, with Mark Quayle named as their new academy national recruitment lead, signing a “rolling contract”. He was lead scout for the 13-18 age group at Goodison Park, highlighting his expertise with young players, and he has now received a promotion.

The update also states that Everton are intending to hire a “performance analyst for the first team”, giving the Blues the best possible chance of turning things around after such a disappointing start to the Premier League campaign.

It is so encouraging to see shrewd decisions being made as The Friedkin Group slowly look to increase their influence at Goodison, as they aim to oversee a far more successful period in the club’s history, following three relegation battles in a row in the league.

The fact that Quayle has spent a period at Arsenal as a youth scout in the past further suggests that he is an expert in his field, and the hope is that he can flourish even more in this new position, looking to make his influence grow further at Everton, unearthing young gems in the process.

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One Everton flop is amazingly outperforming Dominic Calvert-Lewin this season.

By
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Oct 14, 2024

A top-quality performance analyst alongside Dyche would also be welcome, providing the manager with key information, as the new owners look to get the Blues in a position where they have everyone pulling in the same direction, which certainly hasn’t always been the case during the Farhad Moshiri era.

Crystal Palace have emerged as a serious contender to land an international defender in January as they look to recover from a poor start to the Premier League season, according to one report.

Crystal Palace see wings clipped

A tricky start to the season has undone much of the good work Oliver Glasner manager in south London at the end of last season, with a confused and toothless Crystal Palace side yet to manage a win in this season’s Premier League. Though they are not the only winless team, they have scored just five times so far this campaign despite shelling out on attacking trio Eddie Nketiah, Ismaila Sarr and Daichi Kamada over the summer.

The same number of goals as struggling Manchester United, they have found the net just once more than Southampton, who are the division’s lowest scorers. At the other end, Dean Henderson has been beaten on 10 occasions and Palace have laboured to three draws, losing four times already, though they did edge past Championship side QPR in the Carabao Cup thanks to Nketiah’s first and, as it stands, only goal for his new side.

There remains plenty of time to turn things around, and there is little pressure on Glasner, with Palace chairman Steve Parish willing to give him time to turn things around at Selhurst Park as he gets to grip with a new-look squad that has yet to truly be used thanks to injuries and form. Now, they are emerging as a potential destination for an out-of-favour star this January.

Palace serious contenders to sign England defender

That comes as Chelsea journalist Simon Phillips has revealed that Palace are one of the most “serious clubs” to watch when it comes to the future of Ben Chilwell.

The England defender was publicly cast out by Enzo Maresca but could not find a move away from Stamford Bridge before the summer transfer window closed, and has now been somewhat sheepishly added back into the Blues’ Premier League squad.

Despite this, it is clear that his future lies away from Stamford Bridge irrespective of his £200,000 a week deal in west London, which runs until 2027. There is quite a queue for his signature, with Crystal Palace, Fulham, Manchester United and Ipswich Town as well as clubs from across Europe keen to bring the 27-year-old defender out of the footballing wilderness.

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By
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As it stands, those clubs are all offering loan moves, something that Chelsea are yet to accept, and they are keen for a sale. But the Blues may be forced to consider cut-price options after shelling out £50m for the fullback, as they did with Sterling, who joined Arsenal on loan on deadline day on favourable terms to the Gunners.

Palace may hold an advantage in the race for Chilwell’s signature too, with his agency, CAA Stellar, also representing Palace no.1 Henderson, while they have good working relations with Chelsea after signing Trevoh Chalobah on loan in the summer.

However, a move for either Chilwell or Chalobah would have to be permanent for both to reunite at Selhurst Park, with the Premier League’s rules stating that only one loanee from any single club can be permitted. With Chalobah’s deal already sealed until the end of the season, a change to that seems unlikely, leaving a permanent deal for Chilwell as the only realistic solution.

With Tyrick Mitchell the only recognised left-sided defender in Glasner’s squad, it is clearly an area that will require attention in the winter window, though whether they will be able to negotiate a permanent deal for Chilwell remains to be seen.

Roy Keane says Manchester United "got out of jail" with their late FA Cup win over Leicester City after blasting their "shocking" first half.

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• Man Utd beat Leicester 2-1 in FA Cup
• Keane savages United's first-half display
• "Got out of jail" with Maguire winner

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The United legend did not hold back when ripping into his old side's first 45 minutes at Old Trafford on Friday night. The Irishman added that Maguire's late header, which secured the Red Devils a 2-1 win, should have been ruled out as it was offside.

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  WHAT ROY KEANE SAID

  He said on ITV Sport at half-time: "It's shocking, really, really poor. you start looking at this United team for all the stats… No shots on target, two shots on target against Crystal Palace (a 2-0 home loss). They’re boring now. You feel like you should go into the Man Utd dressing room and remind them what the game is about – the goal is that end, you have to put the ball in the back of the net. It's as if they're not even aware of it. Leicester haven't been that great but they've been a bit sharper and they deserve to be in front. Nowhere near good enough. There's no energy, there's no energy in the stadium."

  After the match, Keane added: "The linesman has to see it [Maguire being offside]. United got out of jail tonight. The performance itself was nowhere near good enough."

• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Despite being off the pace for long periods against Premier League strugglers Leicester, United squeaked into round five of the FA Cup as their title defence continues. Keane was not the only one to criticise United, though, as head coach Ruben Amorim said his players didn't perform well and that their late goal should have been chalked off.

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  WHAT NEXT?

  Amorim's United will now await to see who they will get in the next round following the latest round of FA Cup ties this weekend.

Manchester City have set their sights on a summer move to replace Kevin De Bruyne with Bayer Leverkusen star Florian Wirtz.

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• Man City want Florian Wirtz
• German would replace Kevin De Bruyne
• City keen to keep rebuilding ageing squad

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Pep Guardiola is desperate to continue rebuilding his squad after a disappointing 2024-25 campaign, reports, and sees Germany star Wirtz as a major player in the club's future. Leverkusen value their talisman at more than £85 million ($107m). De Bruyne is out of contract in the summer of 2025 and no renewal has been agreed, potentially leaving a vacancy for a younger replacement.

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  De Bruyne turns 34 in June and is seeing his minutes managed more and more by Guardiola, who has also been fielding Mateo Kovacic, Ilkay Gundogan and Bernardo Silva, all of whom are 30 or older, in midfield. City signed Omar Marmoush, Nico Gonzalez, Vitor Reis and Abdukodir Khusanov in January as they attempt to bring down the average age of their squad and the signing of Wirtz would be an enormous statement.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Wirtz has been a major part of the Bayer Leverkusen side that has been one of the best in Europe over the last 18 months. The German scored 18 goals and registered 20 assists as Leverkusen won the Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal and reached the Europa League final last term, and has notched another 26 goal involvements this season as they battle for the Bundesliga and Champions League.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR WIRTZ?

  Wirtz also starred for hosts Germany at Euro 2024 last summer, and a move to one of the richest clubs in the world is an inevitability at some stage. Bayern Munich are also said to be interested, with the Bavarians hoping to team him up with international team-mate Jamal Musiala. City are bound to face competition from elsewhere for his signature, too.

Enzo Maresca has made a superb start to life as Chelsea boss, looking to be a shrewd appointment by Todd Boehly despite the question marks upon his arrival.

The Italian has the Blues sat in fifth place in the Premier League after the first nine matches of the new campaign, losing just twice to title chasers Liverpool and Manchester City.

His side have also impressed in the Europa Conference League, winning both of their opening two fixtures, sitting top of the league format and looking strong favourites to win the entire competition.

The 44-year-old has taken superbly to life in England’s top flight, with his philosophy suiting the current crop of players, allowing him to have a settled starting lineup and giving the big-money additions a chance to flourish under his guidance.

One player in particular has starred once more this campaign, picking up where he left off from 2023/24 and looking like a leading force in the Blues’ recent revival.

Cole Palmer’s stats for Chelsea

Following his £40m move from rivals Manchester City last summer, it was unknown what sort of impact Cole Palmer would have on the first team at Stamford Bridge – but the Englishman quickly established himself as a first-team regular.

The 22-year-old played a huge role in their ability to qualify for Europe last season, registering a combined 33 goals and assists – the highest of any player in the division.

However, he’s not been a one-season wonder, continuing his excellent form under Maresca and undoubtedly proving the talisman in the club’s early-season success.

Palmer, who’s now a regular in the England national team setup, has registered 12 goal contributions in the opening nine league matches – scoring four times in the victory over Brighton a couple of weeks ago.

Once again, he’s currently the leading contributor in the league, currently ahead of Erling Haaland and Mohamed Salah as he looks to remain on top of the tree for a second consecutive campaign.

As a result, his performances have been recognised, winning the PFA’s Young Player of the Year award for last season, whilst also being nominated for the Ballon d’Or.

However, he was unable to get the better of one former Chelsea player who departed West London in the last few years.

The man who finished ahead of Palmer in the Ballon d’Or

Centre-back Antonio Rüdiger joined Chelsea in a £29m deal from Serie A side Roma back in the summer of 2017 – aiming to bolster Antonio Conte’s backline after their Premier League triumph the season prior.

The German made over 200 appearances over his five-year stint at the Bridge, helping the club secure their second Champions League title back in the 2020/21 season.

However, despite his success with the Blues, he would depart on a free transfer to join Real Madrid in the summer of 2022, allowing him to reach the next level in his career.

The 31-year-old “warrior”, as described by Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti, has since won seven major honours following his move to LaLiga, including another Champions League last season.

As a result, Rudiger was in the top 30 of the Ballon d’Or rankings, finishing 22nd, three places higher than Palmer, who finished 25th despite his stellar year at Stamford Bridge.

Whilst the club tried everything to tie down the German – even offering him a £200k-per-week contract – they would undoubtedly wish that they had kept hold of the defender given his recent success.

He would’ve handed Maresca that added defensive solidity that could’ve added that extra quality to help the Italian be a success in his maiden season in charge of the Blues.

Chelsea wasted £63m on Lampard signing who earned more than Palmer does

Chelsea wasted £65m on Lampard signing who earned way more than Palmer does.

By
Angus Sinclair

Oct 29, 2024

The Rossoneri lost it late, conceding two unanswered as Bologna won all three points

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• AC Milan fall to Bologna 2-1 in Serie A
• Yunus Musah started, Christian Pulisic came off bench
• Match was a replay from October rain postponed game

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  WHAT HAPPENED?

  U.S. internationals Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah, and AC Milan fell to Bologna 2-1 in Serie A action on Thursday.

  Pulisic began on the bench but was introduced as a substitute in the 61st minute, while Musah played 90 minutes in the contest being named to the XI.

  Milan winger Rafael Leao opened the scoring late in the first half, scoring a lovely effort after a resilient first 30-plus minutes from Milan's attack. However, just minutes out of the halftime break, Bologna leveled after a mess in the box saw the ball pop around, only for Santiago Castro to poke it home.

  After a contentious second half, Bologna found a winner late, with striker Dan Ndoye scoring the go-ahead goal in the 82nd minute, poking him a low-driven cross in front of the net to steal all three points.

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  Milan have had a rough few weeks domestically and in Europe, crashing out of the UEFA Champions League, and hitting a rough patch of form in Serie A.

  At the end of Thursday's Matchday, the sit eighth in Serie A, eightpoints out of a top-four spot that would guarantee them UCL soccer in 2025-26. The only hope they have left domestically in terms of trophies, is the Coppa Italia, where they have advanced to the semifinals of the competition.

  Sergio Conceicao, meanwhile, is on the hot seat as a manager due to the current circumstances the club finds itself in. The Portuguese coach could find himself out of a job come the end of the season if the don't finish top four in Serie A.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  The match was originally scheduled to be played last October, but due to heavy rains, was postponed. Now, four months later, the two sides were finally able to meet for the replay of their Serie A clash.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR MILAN?

  The are back in action on Sunday in Serie A against Lazio in what has now become a must-win affair.

Manchester United are now considering moving away from a £10m-a-year target and going after an “underrated” player instead due to wage demands, according to a recent report.

The Red Devils look set to announce Ruben Amorim as their new head coach, and the Portuguese will be keen to hit the ground running when he arrives during November’s international break, which was agreed between the two clubs when his release clause was met.

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By
Brett Worthington

Oct 31, 2024

Amorim needs to address Man Utd left-back problem

Amorim’s short-term goal at Old Trafford is to get going in the best way, and that is by winning football matches. But one of his long-term goals must be addressing the left-back problem at the club.

United spent the majority of last season and all of this season so far without a recognised left-back, as Luke Shaw continues to be on the sidelines with a calf injury, on which he has suffered a setback this week, and Tyrell Malacia continues his recovery from a long-term injury. INEOS decided not to sign a left-back during the summer, a decision that has been described as “unbelievable” by pundit/fan Mark Goldbridge.

The Premier League side are clearly looking at all their options, as Julio Soler emerged on their radar last week as an option to replace Shaw. Meanwhile, Wolves’ Rayan Ait-Nouri is also being looked at by United, and there are two other names under consideration at Old Trafford in what looks sure to be the priority position they choose to address in 2025.

£10m-a-year wage demands too much for Alphonso Davies

According to Caught Offside, Manchester United remain keen on Alphonso Davies but are also interested in signing Ben Chilwell from Chelsea. The report states that it remains to be seen if a deal for Davies can be justified by INEOS due to his demands, as he looks for around 12 million euros a year, which is roughly £10 million, the same wages that Antony is on at Old Trafford.

Davies is in the final year of his contract at Bayern Munich and has interest from United, as well as Real Madrid and Barcelona. His future with the German side remains up in the air, but given his demands, a move to Old Trafford may not happen, and therefore, United are also interested in signing Chilwell.

The Chelsea defender, who has been called “underrated” by Youtuber and podcaster Laurenz Vescoli, is seen as a more realistic and affordable option for the Red Devils. However, the Englishman has also had injury problems while at Stamford Bridge, and that could potentially put United off any deal.

Davies could still be seen as a viable option for United, but it is likely that players will have to be sold and moved off the wage bill before the left-back can come to the club. Unlike Davies, Chilwell still has two and a bit years left to run on his contract, so United will have to pay a transfer fee to get him out of Stamford Bridge.

Glasgow Rangers bounced back to winning ways in the Scottish Premiership by narrowly beating Hearts 1-0 at Ibrox on Sunday evening.

The Light Blues opened the scoring in the sixth minute of the match, through a bundled finish by Cyriel Dessers, and that was all it took to secure all three points.

It was far from a perfect performance from the Scottish giants, who tied with Hearts for ‘big chances’ created (2), but it was enough to claim the victory.

One player who caught the eye with his performance for Philippe Clement’s side was central midfielder Nicolas Raskin, who was announced as the Player of the Match in the stadium.

Nicolas Raskin's performance in numbers

The Belgian midfielder has enjoyed a run of games in midfield in recent weeks and his performance on Sunday evening showcased how much he is benefitting from that.

Raskin played the full 90 minutes at Ibrox and was constantly competing all over the park to win duels to help out his team defensively, whilst also making things tick in possession.

As you can see in the table above, the former Standard Liege star was incredibly combative for Rangers and won the majority of his duels in midfield.

He was also relatively reliable in possession of the ball, completing 85% of his attempted passes, but did not create a single chance for his teammates.

Raskin was not the only midfielder to impress in the middle of the park for the Light Blues, however, as Mohamed Diomande was also in fine form.

Mohamed Diomande's performance in numbers

The Ivorian ace was selected in the number ten position, with Tom Lawrence sidelined with a thigh injury, and did enough to justify his place in the side with his display.

It was more industrious than you would typically expect from an attacking midfielder but he is far from a natural in that role, so it was to be expected.

Diomande helped Rangers to grind out the three points with his excellent work out of possession to constantly pressure and close down Hearts players when they had the ball.

The left-footed battler, who recorded a Sofascore rating of 7.4/10, won six of his ten ground duels and both of his aerial contests, which shows that he dominated opposition players on the ground and in the air in duels.

He made two tackles and one interception without being dribbled past a single time, and completed two of his three attempted dribbles, which shows that Diomande was as defensively impressive as Raskin was.

Meanwhile, the Ivorian dynamo completed 86% of his attempted passes and created three chances for his teammates, which shows that he tried to make things happen in the final third and was reliable in his use of the ball, albeit without being rewarded with an assist for his efforts.

Overall, Diomande and Raskin were both as impressive as each other in midfield and Clement will surely be happy with the dynamism his players showed in that area of the pitch.

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By
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